Free Fall: An Elvis Cole - Joe Pike Novel, Book 4

Elvis Cole is just a detective who can't say no, especially to a girl in a terrible fix. And Jennifer Sheridan qualifies: Her fiance, Mark Thurman, is a decorated L.A. cop with an elite plainclothes unit, but Jennifer's sure he's in trouble - the kind of serious trouble that only Elvis Cole can help him out of.

Coolidge

Calvin Coolidge, president from 1923 to 1929, never rated highly in polls, and history has remembered the decade in which he served as an extravagant period predating the Great Depression. Now Amity Shlaes provides a fresh look at the 1920s and its elusive president, showing that the mid-1920s was in fact a triumphant period that established our modern way of life: The nation electrified, Americans drove their first cars, and the federal deficit was replaced with a surplus.

Amity Shlaes captures who Calvin Coolidge was and brings him and his wife to life. This determined man did what no President before or after has ever done - reduce the debt (by almost a third!). The denizens of Washington DC hated him because he did what they said was impossible.

Into the Fire: A Firsthand Account of the Most Extraordinary Battle in the Afghan War

In the fall of 2009, Taliban insurgents ambushed a patrol of Afghan soldiers and Marine advisors in a mountain village called Ganjigal. Firing from entrenched positions, the enemy was positioned to wipe out 100 men who were pinned down and were repeatedly refused artillery support. Ordered to remain behind with the vehicles, 21 year-old Marine corporal Dakota Meyer disobeyed orders and attacked to rescue his comrades.

The performance was excellent. I thought the performer caught the essences of who he was portraying.

The content powerfully caught the sense of brotherhood felt by those who are in combat. The battle scenes were heart breaking as brave men tried to overcome impossible odds against remote commands indifference to their plight. The behavior of remote and high command during and after the battle was most infuriating and damning.

The Road to Serfdom

Originally published in 1944, The Road to Serfdom has profoundly influenced many of the world's great leaders, from Orwell and Churchill in the mid-'40s, to Reagan and Thatcher in the '80s. The book offers persuasive warnings against the dangers of central planning, along with what Orwell described as "an eloquent defense of laissez-faire capitalism".

Even after 60 plus years this book has a powerful message that resonates. F.A. Hayek's projections of what a socialist society inadvertently leads to is dead bang on. Thoughtful readers on the left and right will be able to recognize how accurate Mr. Hayek's by reading today's news stories.

Give Me Tomorrow: The Korean War’s Greatest Untold Story - The Epic Stand of the Marines of George Company

“If I were God, what would you want for Christmas?” With a thousand-yard stare, a haggard and bloodied marine looked incredulously at the war correspondent who asked him this question. In an answer that took “almost forever,” the marine responded, “Give me tomorrow." After nearly four months of continuous and bloody combat in Korea, such a wish seemed impossible.

From start to finish Patrick O'Donnell had me hooked. I normally only listen to books on the drive to and from work. This history of the Marines of G company was so gripping that I listened all the way through.

America, in so many ways, has forgotten: Its roots, its purpose, its identity - all have become shrouded behind a veil of political correctness bent on twisting the nation’s founding, and its founders, to fit within a misshapen modern mold. The time has come to remember again. In The Jefferson Lies, prominent historian David Barton sets out to correct the distorted image of once-beloved founding father Thomas Jefferson.

Barton used primary sources to back up his assertions. Upon further research of those sources- Barton nailed it. His critics both inside and outside of Amazon do not debunk this well foot-noted and accurate work. Read it yourself. If you have the time, research it yourself. In my opinion, you will come to one conclusion concerning Thomas Jefferson - He was indeed a brilliant Christian President. And another conclusions concerning the critics of this book - they are either ignorant of history, or willfully ignorant of primary source history.

In conclusion,some time during the last half of the past century, the history of Thomas Jefferson was stolen. Stolen, in my opinion, by "academicians" who during a more genteel time would have been labeled what the are - charlatans.

One of the most popular Fortune articles in many years was a cover story called "What It Takes to Be Great." Geoff Colvin offered new evidence that top performers in any field - from Tiger Woods and Winston Churchill to Warren Buffett and Jack Welch - are not determined by their inborn talents. Greatness doesn't come from DNA but from practice and perseverance honed over decades.

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